Your Guardian Angel
by writersblock24
Summary: One-Shot. Ranger and Stephanie go after a skip. Based off the song, Your Guardian Angel by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. Listen to it, its awesome... Rating for mild language.


**Author's Note:** I heard this song and I couldn't get it out of my head. I hope you guys enjoy.

Disclaimer: Everything belongs to Janet Evanovich and The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. I just created the plot.

* * *

**Your Guardian Angel- The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus**

_When I see your smile_

_tears roll down my face._

_I can't replace._

_And now that I'm strong I have figured out_

_how this world turns cold and it breaks through my soul,_

_and I know I'll find deep inside me, I can be the one._

_I will never let you fall_

_I'll stand up with you forever_

_I'll be there for you through it all,_

_even if saving you sends me to heaven._

_It's ok..._

_It's ok..._

_It's ok..._

_Seasons are changing and waves are crashing_

_and stars are falling all for us_

_days grow longer and nights grow shorter_

_I can show you I'll be the one._

_I will never let you fall_

_I'll stand up with you forever._

_I'll be there for you through it all,_

_even if saving you sends me to heaven._

_Cause you're my_

_you're my, my,_

_my true love,_

_my whole heart,_

_please don't throw that away._

_Cause I'm here, for you_

_please don't walk away and_

_please tell me you'll stay, stay.._

_Use me as you will_

_pull my strings just for a thrill_

_and I know I'll be okay_

_though my skies are turning gray._

_I will never let you fall_

_I'll stand up with you forever_

_I'll be there for you through it all_

_even if saving you sends me to heaven._

_I will never let you fall_

_I'll stand up with you forever_

_I'll be there for you through it all_

_even if saving you sends me to heaven._

* * *

It was a routine skip. Ranger and I were going to go up to the door, he was going to act bad ass and I was going to collect my money. Lester and Tank were taking the back door, just in case the skip decided to run.

I knocked on the door and he answered the door with a gun pointed at me. I tried to talk him into letting the gun go, but he wasn't having any of it.

It happened so fast.

Shots rang out. Before I could processes it, Ranger had covered my body with his. I heard Tank and Lester running from the back. Tank got on the radio and called for an ambulance while Lester cuffed the skip. Tank grabbed Ranger's unconscious body off of me.

Then I saw it.

Blood.

Ranger and I were both covered in his blood.

"Shit, where's that damn ambulance." Tank said, trying to apply pressure to Ranger's wounds. "Steph, you okay?"

I nodded. I didn't seem to have a voice. I heard the sirens coming down the street. Soon after the ambulance, Morelli's truck showed up. He pulled me to my feet and hugged me while the paramedics worked on Ranger. They had a quick conversation and started to move him to the ambulance.

"Wait!" I screamed. "Wait, where are you going?" I asked the paramedics.

"St. Francis," one shouted back to me.

"Wait, no, don't!" I tried to break free from Morelli's grasp. "Wait! I want to go with him! Let me go!"

"Stephanie, they need to take him." Morelli said into my ear. I didn't hear him.

"I WANT TO GO WITH HIM! Oh, God, Carlos, NO!" I struggled harder and the merry men who had shown up looked shocked when I called Ranger 'Carlos'. I was too. It kind of slipped out. "NO HE NEEDS ME! LET ME GO! CARLOS!"

Morelli kept holding me until the ambulance pulled away. I sank to my feet and began to cry.

"Come on, let's get you cleaned up."

"No, take me to the hospital. I want to be with Ranger."

Tank stepped behind Morelli. "I'll take her. She needs to be there anyway."

"Why?" Morelli yelled.

"Stephanie is Ranger's emergency contact."

Morelli got even redder (if that was possible). I mean, who wouldn't be. His girlfriend was the emergency contact to a mercenary. He wanted me to make all the tough decisions when he couldn't. God, how could I do that? I couldn't even choose between them.

When we got to the hospital, one of the nurses met us and told him of his condition. It was bad. One of the bullets nicked his lung and the other barely missed his heart. He needed immediate surgery, and as I was signing the papers, he started to crash. I could see them trying to shock his heart. He looked so helpless with tubes sticking out of him. I finished signing and went to stand by the window.

"No, no, NO. You are NOT allowed to die on me." I screamed through the window, tears streaming against my face. One of the nurses motioned Tank and he started to drag me away. Who knew that Tank was going to have to strain himself to pull me away?

I stood there listening to the priest saying the procession. It was raining and my shoes were slowly sinking into the ground. Tears were now profusely rolling down my cheeks. I couldn't hold them in anymore. Many of the people around me gave me sympathetic looks. I just ignored them and focused on the priest and the casket slowly going lower and lower…

Hours later, I felt warm, strong hands wrap around me. I leaned back and took a big breath.

"Babe."

"Hi."

"You've been here for hours. I don't think its going anywhere."

"I know." I paused. "That could've been you."

"But it wasn't."

I turned and looked at Ranger. "Don't ever let it be."

"I'll do my best."

I nodded. That was good enough for me. We both knew that he couldn't promise tomorrow, and I was okay with that. I buried my head in his chest. "Let's go home." I said.

He grabbed my left hand and kissed the ring that was now there. I took one last look at the tombstone which bared the name, Steve Hollings, the skip. He had shot himself shortly after the trial. Ranger hugged me to him and then with one arm around me, we walked back to the car. I absently put my hand to my stomach. It was the one bright spot in this dark day.

I'm going to tell Carlos tonight.


End file.
